Cowlishaw: Cowboys' Tony Romo must turn his edge in talent into September victories

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Vernon Bryant/Staff Photographer

Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten (82) shares a laugh with Dallas Cowboys guard Mackenzy Bernadeau (73) andDallas Cowboys tackle Doug Free (68) after shortly after Witten scored his second touchdown of the night during the second half of play in a game between the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants at AT&T Stadium in Arlington on Sunday, September 8, 2013. The Cowboys defeated the Giants 36-31. (Vernon Bryant/The Dallas Morning News)

For the remainder of this month, until Peyton Manning comes knocking to avenge Little Brother’s defeat at AT&T Stadium, Tony Romo gets all the check marks. What he accomplishes with them will set the tone for whether the Cowboys have the kind of September they need in order to return to the playoffs.

Romo vs. Kansas City’s Alex Smith at noon Sunday: Check mark to Romo, even though Smith was second in the NFC in passer rating in 2011 when he led the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game — the season before lost he his job to Colin Kaepernick. That wasn’t the first time Smith lost a job.

Romo vs. St. Louis’ Sam Bradford: Bradford has lacked the protection, the receivers and, frankly, the poise to develop into a top-flight quarterback. For sure it could still happen. It hasn’t yet.

Romo vs. San Diego’s Philip Rivers: Two years ago there would have been a lively discussion here since Rivers at least guided one Chargers team to an AFC Championship Game. As the line crumbled in front of him, his lack of mobility has proved costly time after time, including the Monday night opening loss to Houston.

What’s unusual about all of this?

Rivers was the fourth pick in the 2004 draft. Smith went first overall (famously taken well ahead of Aaron Rodgers) in 2005. Bradford was first overall in 2010.

October will feature three more No. 1 overall picks (Manning, Detroit’s Matthew Stafford, Philadelphia’s Michael Vick) and a No. 2 overall (Washington’s Robert Griffin III), but let’s stick to September for now.

Romo, as a player who went undrafted out of Eastern Illinois, has piled up better statistics than Dallas’ next three opposing quarterbacks. For him to clear up the hole on his résumé with an extended playoff run, the Cowboys need to take advantage of the fact that he should be the best passer on the field for a few weeks.

So it’s Romo’s stage. Even though we have heard so many quarterbacks say so many times that they aren’t playing the opposite quarterback, we know that’s more what the NFL is about today than it has ever been. It’s like saying starting pitchers in baseball aren’t really opposing each other.

Completely irrelevant. You think it isn’t all about Eli vs. Peyton on Sunday in New Jersey?

For finally knocking off the New York Giants last Sunday night in Arlington, Romo received far less praise than you would imagine for such a thing. The story was all about the defense and those six turnovers, which is (mostly) as it should be.

And yet Romo’s uncharacteristic caretaking role with the offense was no small feat.

Instead of gambling and going for broke, the Cowboys offense pulled in the reins. Dez Bryant nearly disappeared from the offense completely, and that’s something that can’t last for long, obviously. But while Romo threw 49 passes and failed to even approach the 300-yard mark (263), the absence of big mistakes enabled the Cowboys to chalk up a victory.

Bryant averaged only 5.5 yards per catch and, except for one 18-yard burst where he got away from defenders, Miles Austin averaged just 7 yards on 10 catches. Dwayne Harris also averaged 6.

Those are shockingly low numbers for wide receivers, but Romo’s 36 completions kept the chains and clock moving and worked in conjunction with a defense that was giving up huge chunks of yardage but making up for it with all those turnovers.

And turnovers will decide if the Cowboys can get off to a 3-1 start in September (it would be preposterous to talk about something more, wouldn’t it?) or if they backslide after the promising start against New York.

The Chiefs provide an unusual test in this regard.

Smith has finally found his niche as a low-risk, low-reward quarterback in an offense that will feature running back Jamaal Charles. It’s an unlikely approach for Andy Reid, who mostly threw the ball all over the field in Philadelphia and with considerable success (17-12) when it came to facing the Cowboys.

Romo is more likely to open the throttle against Kansas City than he did Sunday night. That should mean more throws to Bryant down the field, and it won’t be a surprise if the rookie Terrance Williams is set up for a big play or two in single coverage.

But we know what can happen with Romo when the green light is given. The yards come quickly and so can the turnovers. His 19 interceptions last season matched his career high set in 2007, his first full season as a starter. That shouldn’t happen with a veteran quarterback in the middle of his career.

You’d rather have Romo on your side at this stage, for this game than Smith, and you’d still take Romo the next two weeks, too. You just want to make sure you’re getting the right Romo.

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About Tim Cowlishaw

Tim Cowlishaw has been The Dallas Morning News' lead sports columnist since July 1998. Prior to that he covered the Cowboys for six seasons and the Stars for three as a beat reporter. He also covered the Rangers as a backup beat writer and was the San Jose Mercury News' beat writer on the San Francisco Giants in the late 1980s.

Tim has been appearing regularly on ESPN"s "Around the Horn" since the show made its debut in November 2002. He also worked with ESPN as part of the network's "NASCAR Now" coverage in 2007-08.

Favorite Dallas restaurants: Park, Nick and Sam's, Kenichi.

Worst sports prediction: His first in college ... that Earl Campbell had no shot at the Heisman Trophy.

Best sports memories: Seeing the Dallas Stars hoist the Stanley Cup long after midnight in Buffalo, watching the Dallas Cowboys win the Super Bowl and Texas win the national title in perfect Rose Bowl settings.